Sam Darnold: Big Gun in Gotham

Sam Darnold (14)

Honestly, I didn't get the chance to watch much of Sam Darnold's rookie season. One being I don't watch football as much as I used to; political reasons being one of them, the other is being in Louisiana and the fact that they haven't had a winning season in three years-- although I think that's about to change-- the Jets don't appear on TV very often out here. Lately, I usually catch something on the play-by-play or a good amount of highlights, so my take on Sam Darnold is based on what I've been able to see of him. Quick side note: If I change my mind about the first reason, it would only be to have coverage for my blogs.

Sam had an up-and-down rookie reason, as most rookie quarterbacks do while adjusting to the speed, aggression and subtleties of the big league, overall, I think he showed plenty of promise and I think he has a great and bright future ahead of him. Last year when the Jets moved up in the draft to pick him, I'll admit that I thought he was a little overrated. Prior to the draft, there were plenty of comparisons of him to the Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck. I heard some say Carson Wentz or Ben Roethlisberger, but it was mostly Andrew Luck.

From what I've seen of his college tape, I saw some good things such as the rocket arm, the unflappability and mobility in the pocket, but it wasn't enough to convince me that he should be a top five pick, let alone the first overall as some were suggesting. I viewed him as a first round talent, just not a top five first round talent. I'll admit, the guy I wanted them to draft was Bradley Chubb-- who finished his rookie season with 12 sacks-- but when the move was made to get Darnold, I decided to change my thinking and embrace optimism.

Another reason why I had reservations of them picking Sam at first was because they had signed Teddy Bridgewater, a guy who is still young and is at least above average, in my opinion, who can still start in the league a month earlier. Initially, I was hoping they would've stayed pat with the 6th overall pick and addressed the trenches by drafting either OL Quenton Nelson or DE/LB Bradley Chubb, which is exactly where Nelson was picked.

From watching how Sam dealt with the media soon after the draft I was immediately impressed with his intangibles. The first preseason game, he showed a tid bit of why the Jets rolled the dice in the draft to pick him. It was some up-and-downs after that-- which apparently was a precursor for what was to come for the regular season-- but all-in-all, I could see what the Jets saw in him. Before preseason ended, they traded Bridgewater to the New Orleans Saints and went all in with Darnold.

In his very first regular reason game, after getting off to a rocky start, he along with the defense finished strong, defeating the Detroit Lions 48-17 on Monday Night Football. From there, things were hot and cold, as Sam went through the growing pains of an NFL rookie-- rookie quarterback, in particular. Some say that general manager Mike Maccagnan sacrificed or "tanked," as the saying goes, the season to speed up Sam's development. I want to say that's speculation, but he once admitted last season that the offense would probably be in a better position than they were if a veteran QB was under center, but I digress.

 I saw some of the same things from him that I had seen from his college tape: the arm strength, quick release, mobility, leadership and unflappable demeanor. I like his ability to maneuver in the pocket and keep a cool head under duress. Yes, there were the"rookie mistakes," (translation: erratic, ill-advised throws) but there were also plays where his improvisational skills turned a disaster into a positive play, if not points.

I would like to see him improve on his accuracy, but I think will come with time, particularly being in new head coach Adam Gase's offense, but my biggest issue with Darnold last year was the same question mark most had on him entering the draft: turnovers. While he finished with slightly more touchdowns than interceptions (17-15) he tied for 2nd in the league with the most interceptions thrown.

Obviously, I wasn't expecting for him to be "Tom Brady," Drew Brees, or Aaron Rodgers like some people seem to be foolishly doing, right away. I mean, that's asking a lot from any quarterback, but especially a rookie. However, I think he has the ceiling to someday elevate to that level, perhaps higher. I know that's laughable to most right now, but you never know.

Again, from what I've seen of him, he has everything one looks for in a quarterback in terms of measurables and intangibles. His fundamentals might not always be pretty or refined, but he gets it done at the end of the day. The main thing I think he needs to work on is limiting the turnovers, which he is committed to doing. I realize he's a gunslinger at heart, and gunslingers tend to take chances, hence, they tend to make that throw you'd hoped they wouldn't have made, but overall, the turnovers can still be limited. From there, I like what I've seen from him and mostly what he's capable of becoming.

With the addition of Le'Veon Bell, Jamison Crowder, and the additions to fortify the offensive line to protect him-- which lack of protection from the line was another thing that hindered him last season, but that's not his fault-- along with some other key additions and still the draft to go, the Jets are on the path to rise from the depths of misery and oblivion to league prominence, and at the helm of that rise will be Sam Darnold, the next superstar quarterback.